CBS hasn’t aired that much yelling over politics on a Saturday night since All in the Family. The debate in South Carolina between the six remaining Republican candidates even had its own Archie Bunker calling everybody “meathead.”

But before the elbows were thrown, heads were bowed in honor of Justice Antonin Scalia, whose death was announced mere hours before the debate.

Scalia and the Supreme Court

That’d be about it for silence. The topic of Scalia’s untimely passing naturally led to questions about a replacement. However, rather than ask the candidates what kind of justice they would appoint, or the role in general of the Supreme Court, moderator John Dickerson focused on the politics, with a Democratic spin.

The gist of his line of questioning: Isn’t it wrong to block President Obama from exercising his constitutional duty to replace Scalia? The candidates were nearly unanimous in wanting the next justice to come with the next President. Donald Trump advised Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell: “Delay, delay, delay.”

John Kasich hoped President Obama would appoint somebody that would be approved by the Senate unanimously. “I wish the president, for once, put the people first.” Both Marco Rubio and Ted Cruz noted that a lame-duck president hasn’t gotten a justice confirmed in 80 years. Cruz pointed out the judicial stakes of the upcoming election:

We are one justice away from a Supreme Court that will strike down every restriction on abortion adopted by the states. We are one justice away from a Supreme Court that will reverse the Heller decision, one of Justice Scalia’s seminal decisions that upheld the Second Amendment right to keep and to bear arms.

We are one justice away from a Supreme Court that would undermine the religious liberty of millions of Americans — and the stakes of this election, for this year, for the Senate, the Senate needs to stand strong and say, “We’re not going to give up the U.S. Supreme Court for a generation by allowing Barack Obama to make one more liberal appointee.”

“Saturday Night’s Alright for Fighting” 

With the stakes so high for the nation, one might think the candidates would engage in a somber debate of issues. Wrong. Goaded by a booing, yelling audience that would not be out of place at a dogfight, and in a state that sets the low bar for nasty politicking, things rapidly turned ugly.

Launching a spitball? Ready to backhand his young rival? Whispering something nasty about Jeb Bush’s mother? Sharing a knock-knock joke?

The word “lie” or “lied” was used 15 times, mostly by Trump. “You are the single biggest liar,” he told Cruz, “You’re probably worse than Jeb Bush.” Marco Rubio also accused Cruz of lying.

When Cruz challenged Rubio over comments he made about immigration on Univision, Rubio said, “I don’t know how he knows what I said on Univision because he doesn’t speak Spanish.” Cruz immediately responded in Spanish, and it was pretty clear he wasn’t saying, “Hey, buddy, let’s go have a burrito after the debate.”

After Trump

Cruz also went after his former buddy Trump. He jabbed at Trump’s lack of substance. The nation’s problems are “not going to be solved with magic pixie dust,” he said. “It’s not going to be solved by declaring into the air, ‘Let there be jobs.'” Trump called Cruz “a nasty guy.” Cruz then reminded America that Trump had called the good and gentle Ben Carson “pathological and compared him to a child molester.”

When Cruz reminded voters Trump supported funding Planned Parenthood, the Donald threw a fit. Same thing during a discussion over Chief Justice John Roberts. Cruz, using his indoor voice, advised, “Adults learn not to interrupt.”

Jeb Bush, who spent the earlier part of the debate cycle getting slapped around by Trump, also went hard after the blustering billionaire. He attacked Trump for trying to grab through eminent domain the home of an elderly woman for his failed casino. As to Donald comparing himself to Ronald Reagan, Bush said, “He didn’t tear down people like Donald Trump is. He tore down the Berlin Wall.”

Bush slammed Trump for attacking his family, including having the gall to attack his mother. Trump responded, “She should be running.” Yes, the best comback from the man who would be commander-in-chief’s was the equivalent of “Your mother wears army boots.”

“I gotta tell you,” interjected Kasich, “This is just crazy. This is just nuts, okay? Jeez, oh man.”

On the positive side, Trump again vowed to stop using foul language.

Then again, he also — in essence — repeated the vulgar liberal mantra, “Bush Lied, People Died.”

Which Bush is Running Again?

Trump was very persistent in attacking Bush. George W. Bush, that is. A guy who hasn’t been President for seven years, and spends more time painting animal portraits than engaging in politics.

After boasting how he was against the Iraq War, Trump accused the former President of lying about Saddam Hussein’s weapons of mass destruction and making a mess of Iraq and the Middle East. He then blamed Bush for failing to stop the 9/11 attack.

Rather than brother Jeb, it was Marco Rubio who offered a powerful defense of George W. “I just want to say, at least on behalf of me and my family, I thank God all the time it was George W. Bush in the White House on 9/11 and not Al Gore.”

Marco Rubio Bounces Back, Jeb Shines

A big question going into Saturday night’s debate was whether Rubio could rebound from his robotic New Hampshire debate debacle. The freshman Senator promised supporters he would not make the same mistake again, and for at least this debate, he kept his promise.

Rubio’s performance was praised across the political spectrum, from Stephen F. Hayes of Weekly Standard to The Washington Post. One particularly strong moment: “Parenting is the most important job any of us will ever have,” he said while discussing his plan for child tax credits. “Family formation is the most important thing in society.”

Jeb Bush is getting the award for most improved. For the second straight debate, he not only went toe-to-toe with Donald Trump, he laid out his positions and successes with confidence and command. However, he did have to address an odd charge from Trump that “two days ago he said he would take off his pants and moon everybody.”

“Just, for the record,” he said, “if [his mother’s] watching the debate, I did not say that I was going to moon somebody.”

It was that kind of night in South Carolina.

For a full transcript of the GOP Debate, click here.